MGM to Remake 1976 Horror Film THE TOWN THAT DREADED SUNDOWN

MGM is planning to remake the 1976 flick The Town That Dreaded Sundown. The slasher flick was based on five unsolved, grisly murders in 1946 Texarkana. “The Phantom Killer” has a memorable look as his mask is nothing more than a sack-cloth with an eyehole. I saw the film earlier this year, and it reminded me of Wes Craven‘s Last House on the Left as it had truly horrific scenes but then awkwardly moved to comic scenes featuring inept lawmen.

The challenge in remaking The Town That Dreaded Sundown is figuring out how to make it more than a generic slasher film. Halloween hadn’t come out yet in 1976, so the slasher subgenre was relatively lean when Sundown came out. Now that audiences know how slasher movies work, I’m curious to see how the new filmmakers will try to get scares out of the plot. It might be best to return to the original’s “true crime” vibe since the narration is the film’s most effective aspect. According to Variety, MGM is “asking agents for possible takes from writers to reboot the Charles B. Pierce film.” Hit the jump to check out the trailer.